Press Conference with Bradford and Spagnuolo

Bradford:

(On what he was thinking when he arrived at Russell Training Center Friday morning)“I was definitely a little nervous. I woke up a little before my alarm went off this morning and all I was thinking about was today. Like I said, it’s been a long time. I really wasn’t sure how it was going to go today just as far as schedule and the practice, but once I got out there I felt really comfortable and I really enjoyed it. It was just fun being out there with the guys today.”(On establishing himself as a leader this weekend)“Obviously in this camp it’s something that I did want to establish. I knew talking to the Rams, they asked me a couple questions about if I’d be able to come in here and take control of the huddle, since at Oklahoma we were in the no huddle. It’s something that I haven’t done in a couple years, but I felt very comfortable in the huddle today. I felt like I did a good job of taking control and it felt good.”(On what he’s hoping to take away from this weekend)“I’m just trying to learn as much as possible this weekend. I think it’s a great learning experience for me. I’m getting a lot of good reps out there today. Obviously I’ve got a lot to learn. That was apparent today. Everything looks really good on paper, but when the X’s and O’s start moving, it gets a little tougher. It was good though. I think I learned some things from this morning and hopefully I can improve on those and make the corrections for this afternoon.”(On how he handled the windy conditions)
“Not bad. It’s windy back home, so it’s really nothing new for me.”(On learning the Rams’ offense)“I do feel pretty comfortable with it. A lot of the stuff we’ve put in so far is similar to what we’ve done at Oklahoma. Obviously it’s not the exact same, but the concepts are fairly similar. Now it’s just a matter of me getting comfortable calling it in the huddle and being able to process it quickly as we get to the line.”(On how his shoulder feels)“It feels great. I thought I made a wide variety of throws today. I thought I made some down-field throws, some intermediate throws, some quick throws and they all felt good. The arm feels great. It’s not tired at all, so I’m really happy with the way the shoulder feels right now.”(On his goals in terms of how quickly he becomes a starter)
“Like you said, I don’t know. It’s not up to me. It’s up to them. I know I’m going to come here every day and work as hard as I can, try to learn as much as possible, and when they feel the time is right, they’ll make that decision.” (On if he has an idea in his mind of when he hopes to become the starter)
“I think it’s a little early to start making those types of statements. Obviously I’ve only gone through one practice. I’ve only seen a very small portion of the playbook. I can’t say that. All I know is I’m going to show up and try to help this team win.”(On how he’s handling the expectations)“I’m just trying to have fun with it. It seems like everyone I talked to told me that obviously there was going to be a lot of pressure, a lot of expectations, but if you start to let it overwhelm you, then it affects what you do on the field and off the field. That’s the last thing you want to happen. I’m in a great situation right now and I think as long as I have fun and realize I’m so fortunate to get to play football every day, I think I’m going to be okay.”(On the size of the playbook he’s working out of right now)
“It’s still pretty big. It’s definitely not just a pamphlet. We put in probably more plays than we ran out here today and we’re going to put more plays in for this afternoon’s practice. So it’s definitely not small, but I know that there’s a lot more to it than what we’re at right now.”(On if he’s at the point where he doesn’t even think about the shoulder any more)
“Yeah, pretty much. I’ve moved past that. I think obviously everyone else still has questions about it, everyone else still wants to see if I’m going to be able to take a hit, but in my mind it’s stronger than it ever has been and it feels really good.”(On what the last couple days have been like interacting with his coaches)
“It was great just talking ball with coaches, getting to learn a little bit about the playbook; especially before I came here. I think that was important. I think that was one of the reasons I felt comfortable today is just because I had talked on the phone with (Offensive Coordinator) Coach (Pat) Shurmur and (Quarterbacks) Coach (Richard) Curl the past couple days. To get here and actually get on the field, that’s a lot more fun than talking about it on the phone.”(On the downtime he had in Oklahoma last week)
“It was definitely nice. I haven’t been home in a while, and even when I’ve been home, it’s been getting ready for workouts or getting ready for pro day. To have everything behind me and actually get to relax and just kind of take a deep breath and hang out with my friends and family, it was really nice.”(On his conversations with OT Rodger Saffold)“They’ve been pretty good. We’re actually roommates this week. Last night after we got back from meetings, we got back around 9 (p.m.) and we had a chance to just hang out for about an hour. I really like him so far. I think he’s got a great personality and I really look forward to playing with him.”(On working this week with several players who are on tryouts)“I don’t think I ever thought of it like that. I’m here just doing what I do, trying to learn, trying to take in as much as possible from this weekend. I really can’t control what happens to everyone else here, but I can control what I do. I’m going to work as hard as I can these next couple of days and try to take as much out of it as I can.”

Spags:

(Opening Remarks)“It was great to be outside. Another thing I’ll say is that I think the grounds crew has done a great job with the fields. Anybody that was here last year knows that they weathered down. I thought they did a great job. Scott Parker and his crew, I thought did a nice job. This is a little bit different kind of camp. Every one of those guys, except about six of them, were out there for their first time in an NFL practice, first time hearing our offense and defense, but for the most part I thought they did a pretty good job. I thought the coaches did a nice job getting a bunch of guys that hadn’t done any of this, getting them ready to practice. So having said that, I will open it up.”(On impressions of QB Sam Bradford)
“Well, he doesn’t like wind. No, he did not say that. I thought he did a nice job. I was especially just kind of keeping an eye ball on things like in and out of the huddle, the command of the huddle. He does take charge and that kind of stuck out, which I thought was good.”(On if Bradford was rusty)
“Well, it was hard for me to see that because I haven’t stood next to him when he is kind of fine tuned. But he didn’t look uncomfortable. Just getting the guys in the huddle, making a break, and he’s focused, he’s got a look about him. Its day one.”(On how basic or complicated the practices will be for mini camp)“Yes, we didn’t get too complicated.” (On what his expectations for mini camp)“This particular camp here… when I talked to them last night, I told them three things and a couple of goals here for this camp were just to learn how to practice, learn how we practice; evaluate their ability to learn; and then evaluate their talent. I always add at the end of it that we’re constantly evaluating their character, and that’s not real complicated stuff. We did base scheme and fundamentals, but it’s not about trying to win a game right now but getting guys in the groove to the way we do things.”(On the opportunity the tryout players have to make an impression)
“The reason we do it that way is so they can show us what their skills are. If you give them too much complicated-wise or try to do too many things, they get a little brain freeze and then you don’t really get to see what they are physically so they can just let it go.”(On having a few St. Louis natives invited to the minicamp)“Well, I’ll tell you, we’d like to be able to do that a little bit more. I think it just kind of happened that way, but that is something that going we would like to be able to do.”(On the first thing he wants to see from Bradford)“Well, again I kind of repeat, I wanted to see his command of the huddle, his interaction with his teammates. Now he’s not around a bunch of veterans right now, so that’s another test. He did not look uncomfortable. He kind of stepped to the forefront. You could he was the guy that’s done this before. So that’s a small thing, but I would be a lot worried if he hadn’t passed that simple test.” (On how Bradford’s retention of the playbook is going so far)“Really good. (Quarterbacks/Assistant Head Coach) Dick (Curl) and (Offensive coordinator) Pat (Shurmur) both said even last night when they met a little bit and even this morning that he’s a sharp guy. Now, I always hesitate when I hear that because it’s one thing to be smart in the building, it’s another thing to think smart out of the building. But we’ll go up and look at the film and I’ll ask the coaches if it kind of coincided or if it was different when he got there. We’ll find out.”(On if they drafted Murphy because he thrives on his physical play)“It had all to do with that. I think he’s a little rusty. I watched him a little bit. I don’t get to see everybody or get my eye on every player. Especially with the numbers we have. But that’s why we got him and that’s what we’re hoping to develop because I think that’s helps you defensively.”(On what attracted them to QB Thaddeus Lewis)“Well the scouts, they do a pretty good job on that and I just trusted their opinion. With a lot of these guys out here now, and I’m not going to try to hide it, I don’t know every guy, every number. I told them in the meeting this morning that, please, I don’t mean any disrespect if I say, ‘Hey, 25,’ and I mean that. I think that’s a disrespectful thing to do, but we had to do it to get through the practice. We’ll go in here and look at the film and then start to chip away with the evaluations.”(On if anyone stood out to him this morning)
“I can’t say that. No, I’ve tried to jot down some notes. Again, it’s a scramble…the position coaches are honed in on their position. For me, I’m trying to get them all. So nobody really did stand out.”(On if he watches the draft picks more than others in this setting)“Initially, I did. I wanted to make sure they get in their uniform and look right. But then I just tried to look at everybody. Like if I went to a position, actually initially it was seeing who would stand out. I guess hoping it was the draft picks at each spot. Then I just jotted down little notes. I think you have to watch the tape to really get a feel.”(On if he has talked to Bradford about when he wants him to start)
“You’re way ahead of me there…Nothing preconceived, didn’t really set anything that way. The only thing we’ve set right now is get through these next five practices.”(On what S Kevin Payne brings to the team)
“He’s a physical safety that’s played in the league. He looked a little bit experienced there. I visited with him yesterday when he came in for his physical. He’s excited to be here, which is a bonus. He’s going to drive down here on Sunday and get right in the thick of things with the offseason program.”(On if the afternoon practice will be inside)“Today you mean? Yeah we’ll be fine. Is it going to rain?”
“I hope not. I like to be outside.”